The encyclopedia · Advertising & PR · Marketing decision · 2007–2011
Nike cut Vick the day his plea details came out — then re-signed him four years later
Six years after signing him, Nike suspended, terminated and then re-signed the same quarterback — the full sponsor playbook in one career.
Nike · Reebok · Atlanta Falcons · 2007-08-24
What happened
In July 2007 a federal grand jury indicted Michael Vick, the Atlanta Falcons' franchise quarterback, over a dogfighting operation. Within days Nike suspended his endorsement contract without pay and stopped selling his products; Reebok, the league's official jersey supplier, halted sales of his No. 7 jersey — the first individual jersey it had ever pulled. Nike had signed Vick in 2001, the year Atlanta made him the first pick of the NFL draft, and his fifth signature shoe was already on hold.
On 24 August, the day the details of his plea agreement were released, Nike terminated the contract. Its statement read: 'Nike has terminated our contract with Michael Vick following today's release of details of his plea. As we have said in previous statements, we consider any cruelty to animals inhumane, abhorrent and unacceptable.' The same day the NFL suspended Vick indefinitely, and on 27 August he pleaded guilty to a federal dogfighting conspiracy charge, admitting he had helped kill six to eight dogs and supplied money for the gambling on the fights.
He was sentenced to 23 months in December 2007. The Falcons released him in June 2009; Philadelphia signed him later that year; and after a 2010 season that made him the league's Comeback Player of the Year, Nike signed him again on 1 July 2011: 'We do not condone those actions, but we support the positive changes he has made to better himself off the field.'
Why it happened
- The decision took a day: Nike suspended after the indictment, then terminated the moment the plea details were released — the statement's own timing was 'today's release of details of his plea'.
- The bets were old and deep: six years with Nike, a signature shoe line, and the first jersey Reebok ever pulled — the longer the association, the louder the exit had to be.
- The market reset: after prison and a comeback season, Nike re-signed the man it had ended its contract with over cruelty to animals — performance rewrote the conduct calculus.
The lesson
A sponsorship is a contract on judgment, and it repriced in a day: Nike suspended, terminated and re-signed the same man in four years — the calculus was performance, not conduct.
Aftermath
Vick was sentenced on 10 December 2007 and released from prison in 2009. The Falcons released him on 12 June 2009 in a 98-word statement, and Philadelphia signed him later that year. The league's suspension had opened the way for Atlanta to recover $22 million of his signing bonus. Vick was voted the league's Comeback Player of the Year after his 2010 season, and Nike re-signed him on 1 July 2011, saying it did not condone his actions but supported 'the positive changes he has made.'
Sources
- Updated Nike Statement Regarding Michael Vick — Nike investor news release, 24 August 2007
- Vick Pleads Guilty in Dogfighting Case — NPR, 27 August 2007
- Nike suspends Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick's contract; Reebok halts jersey sales — NFL.com, August 2007
- Vick Sentenced to 23 Months for Conspiracy — NPR, 10 December 2007
- Falcons release Michael Vick — LA Times, 13 June 2009
- Nike re-signs Michael Vick as endorser — ESPN, 1 July 2011
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